Glassware forming machines, including particularly individual section glassware forming machines, include one or more blank molds for forming molten glass gobs into glass parisons, blow molds for blowing the glass parisons into articles of glassware such as glass containers, and transfer mechanisms for transferring the glass parisons from the blank molds to the blow molds and for transferring the articles of glassware from the blow molds. The blank molds and the blow molds typically are formed by mold halves mounted on mold arms for opening and closing the molds. A general object of the present disclosure is to provide an apparatus for opening and closing the blank molds and/or the blow molds of a glassware forming machine, which is easily serviced and thereby reduces machine downtime for maintenance and repair.
The present disclosure embodies a number of aspects that can be implemented separately from or in combination with each other.
Apparatus for opening and closing mold arms in a glassware forming machine, in accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, includes a gearbox for mounting on a glassware machine frame, a cylinder housing suspended beneath the gearbox, and a mold open/close cylinder disposed within the cylinder housing. The cylinder has a mold open/close piston with an extending piston rod and a gear rack machined or otherwise formed in the piston rod. A first drive gear in the cylinder housing is coupled to the gear rack and a drive shaft extends from the first drive gear and the cylinder housing into the gearbox. A second drive gear is disposed in the gearbox and coupled to the drive shaft. Laterally spaced operating shafts extend upwardly from within the gearbox. Means including an idler gear couple the second drive gear to the operating shafts such that the operating shafts are rotated simultaneously in opposite directions by the mold open/close cylinder, the gear rack, the first and second drive gears and the idler gear. In exemplary embodiments of the disclosure, the means include driven gears or connecting links coupling the second drive gear and the idler gear to the operating shafts. Linkages couple the operating shafts to the mold arms of the glassware forming machine.
Apparatus for opening and closing mold arms in a glassware forming machine, in accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, includes a gearbox for mounting on a glassware machine frame, a cylinder housing suspended beneath the gearbox, and a mold open/close cylinder disposed within the cylinder housing. The cylinder has a mold open/close piston with an extending piston rod and a gear rack machined or otherwise formed in the piston rod. Drive gears couple the gear rack to operating shafts on which the mold arms are mounted for moving the mold arms between open and closed positions. A mold close boost cylinder within the cylinder housing has a mold close boost piston operatively coupled to the piston rod and the gear rack. A mold close boost air supply on the cylinder housing supplies air to the boost cylinder and functions through the mold close boost piston, the piston rod and the gear rack to assist the mold open/close cylinder in holding the mold arms in the closed position. The mold close boost air supply preferably includes an exhaust valve for rapidly exhausting air from the mold close boost cylinder when the mold open/close cylinder moves the mold arms toward the open position. The mold close boost piston preferably is mounted on and end of the piston rod remote from the mold open/close piston.